Daniel Radcliffe recalls late Dumbledore actor Michael Gambon trying to make him laugh during fin...

&34;He would never stop,&34; Radcliffe remembered. &34;Like until action had been said sometimes, he would try and make me laugh.&34; Daniel Radcliffe recalls late Dumbledore actor Michael Gambon trying to make him laugh during final Harry Potter film: 'Twats in a boat' &34;He would never stop,&34; Radcliffe remembered. &34;Like until action had been said sometimes, he would try and make me laugh.&34; By Mekishana Pierre :maxbytes(150000):stripicc()/MekishanaPierreauthorphotoed08906b8105488ca1e991de8ac00dec.jpg) Mekishana Pierre Mekishana Pierre is a news writer at .

"He would never stop," Radcliffe remembered. "Like until action had been said sometimes, he would try and make me laugh."

Daniel Radcliffe recalls late Dumbledore actor Michael Gambon trying to make him laugh during final Harry Potter film: 'Twats in a boat'

"He would never stop," Radcliffe remembered. "Like until action had been said sometimes, he would try and make me laugh."

By Mekishana Pierre

Mekishana Pierre

Mekishana Pierre is a news writer at **. She has been working at EW since 2025. Her work has previously appeared on *Entertainment Tonight* and Popsugar.

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February 19, 2026 4:31 p.m. ET

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Michael Gambon and Daniel Radcliffe in 'Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'. Credit:

While many *Harry Potter* fans remember Michael Gambon as the beloved Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore he portrayed in multiple films from the franchise, Daniel Radcliffe remembers the late actor for the consistent jokester he was behind the scenes.**

During the latest episode of First We Feast's *Hot Ones*, Radcliffe recalled how much Gambon, who took over the role of Dumbledore following the death of Richard Harris in 2002, could always be counted on for a laugh during filming.

"It's the people who can do the work without making you constantly aware of how hard they're working are always the people that seemed the coolest," the actor told host Sean Evans on Thursday's episode of the late actor and the other veteran stars that made up the film's star-studded cast.

"Michael Gambon, may he rest in peace, incredible man," Radcliffe said. "He f---ed around all the time. Like he would never stop until action had been said sometimes, he would try and make me laugh."

Daniel Radcliffe and Michael Gambon in 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2'.

The 36-year-old said Gambon's playful attitude was markedly different from actors who "love to like dress the whole process up in mystique and being an enigma."

Radcliffe recalled specific moments where Gambon would use set instructions for punny play on words: "Michael Gambon, you'd get to set and he'd be like 'What's the shot?' And you'd be like, oh it's cameras here, Michael, so you're there in front of it but you're looking that way and he'd say, 'Oh what is this BOHNAR? I was like, 'Sorry what's that?' And he's like, 'Back of head, no acting required?' And it's like yes, yes, it is."

"When we were doing the sixth film [*Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1*], me and him were doing the final sequence and we were in this boat," Radcliffe remembered. "I can't remember the details, but we're in this little boat going over to this island surrounded by bad stuff. And he'd be like, 'What's this, TTIAB?' I was like what? 'Two twats in a boat?'"

The Irish-English star joined the *Harry Potter* film series as Dumbledore for its third installment, 2004's *Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban*, after the death of Harris, who portrayed the character in the first two films. Gambon died in 2023 at age 82 following a bout of pneumonia.

Jude Law succeeded Gambon as Dumbledore when he played a young version of the character in two *Fantastic Beasts* prequel films.

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Daniel Radcliffe urges 'Harry Potter' fans to stop asking new cast about original stars

Following in their footsteps is John Lithgow, who will pick up the icon's wizarding robes for the upcoming HBO Max TV adaptation of J.K. Rowling's young adult series. The show is set to debut in 2027 with showrunner Francesca Gardiner and director Mark Mylod at the helm. It has been billed as a faithful adaptation, expanding each of Rowling's seven books into individual seasons.

The *3rd Rock From the Sun* star confirmed he'd be playing the role of Dumbledore last February, telling Screenrant that the role "came as a total surprise to me."

John Lithgow; Michael Gambon as Albus Dumbledore.

Jamie McCarthy/Getty; Murray Close/Warner Bros.

"It was not an easy decision because it's going to define me for the last chapter of my life, I'm afraid," the actor admitted. "I'm very excited. Some wonderful people are turning their attention back to *Harry Potter*. That's why it's been such a hard decision. I'll be about 87 years old at the wrap party, but I've said yes."

***Get your daily dose of entertainment news, celebrity updates, and what to watch with our EW Dispatch newsletter.***

Although many fans expressed outrage and disappointment at seeing some of their favorite stars joining the production considering Rowling's controversial anti-trans views, actors like Lithgow have defended the decision to sign on for the planned eight-season saga.

"Of course, it upsets me when people are vehemently opposed to my having anything to do with this," Lithgow said on stage at the International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR), per *The Hollywood Reporter*. "But if you read through the *Harry Potter* canon, you see absolutely no trace of transphobic sensibility. She has written this great meditation on kindness and empathy and acceptance, which is why it's so strange to me."

Lithgow continued, "Dumbledore is a beautiful role. There's so much more to it than I even realized, mainly because of these people who are creating the series. So it was a hard decision on the basis of that [controversy], and it made me very uncomfortable and unhappy that people were actively insisting that I walk away from this job. But I chose not to do that."

Reflecting on the state of U.S. and global politics overall, Lithgow added, "Now, we're in the midst of a war on empathy, and I'm on the side of empathy."

Watch Daniel Radcliffe on *Hot Ones *above.**

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Published: February 19, 2026 at 11:38PM on Source: RED MAG

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